Abstract
At the College of Staten Island (CSI) Library-CUNY, the library has access to over 160 different electronic resources. A concerted effort started in 2016 to start collecting relevant voluntary product accessibility template (VPAT) statements from new and current vendors and integrate these new practices into acquisition and electronic resources (ER) workflows. The paper will discuss the responsibilities of purchasing agents in libraries, acquisition or ER librarians, in regard to understanding disability law and how these legal mandates apply when investigating, acquiring, and maintaining electronic resources. Relevant tools will be discussed, in particular the use of VPATs and WCAG 2.0 guidelines that can be used when evaluating digital resources for Section 508 compliance. A VPAT repository was started using Centralized Online Resource Acquisitions and Licensing (CORAL) tool, by the CSI library. The benefits and the limitations of these evaluation tools will be discussed, as well as the sharing of current processes used at other libraries in determining the accessibility of e-resources. The concept of universal design (UD) and how to incorporate UD into better purchasing decisions for ER products will be introduced.
Keeping Up Accessibility Practices and How It Relates to Purchasing and Collection Development in Academic Libraries: A Case Study at the College of Staten Island Library
At the College of Staten Island (CSI) Library-CUNY, the library has access to over 160 different electronic resources. A concerted effort started in 2016 to start collecting relevant voluntary product accessibility template (VPAT) statements from new and current vendors and integrate these new practices into acquisition and electronic resources (ER) workflows. The paper will discuss the responsibilities of purchasing agents in libraries, acquisition or ER librarians, in regard to understanding disability law and how these legal mandates apply when investigating, acquiring, and maintaining electronic resources. Relevant tools will be discussed, in particular the use of VPATs and WCAG 2.0 guidelines that can be used when evaluating digital resources for Section 508 compliance. A VPAT repository was started using Centralized Online Resource Acquisitions and Licensing (CORAL) tool, by the CSI library. The benefits and the limitations of these evaluation tools will be discussed, as well as the sharing of current processes used at other libraries in determining the accessibility of e-resources. The concept of universal design (UD) and how to incorporate UD into better purchasing decisions for ER products will be introduced.